Merchandise supply device for storing and making available for picking sell-by-weight loose products

ABSTRACT

Merchandise supply device for storing and making available for picking sell-by-weight loose products. The device comprises a container ( 10 ) having side walls ( 12, 12,13 ) and a bottom wall ( 14 ), which walls ( 11 - 14 ) together define a storage space for the product, wherein a sloped bottom wall ( 14 ) is arranged for gravity feeding the product from a rear fill opening ( 15 ) to a front pick-out opening ( 17 ), which pick-out opening ( 17 ) is covered by an openable lid ( 13 ). The pick-out opening ( 17 ) is covered by an intrusion barrier device ( 30 ) comprising an iris port ( 40 ). An intrusion barrier device for use with a merchandise supply device is also disclosed.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present disclosure relates generally to the field of merchandisesupply devices for storing and providing sell-by-weight loose productsin shops and in particular to a device for storing such products andmaking them available for the customers to collect by picking. Thedisclosure also relates to an intrusion barrier device for use with amerchandise supply device.

BACKGROUND

In the sale of loose products or commodities which are sold by weight,sometimes referred to as bulk products or bulk inventory, such as, forexample, sweets, tea, grains, nuts and the like, different merchandisesupply systems for storing and making the products available to thecustomers are used. The systems often comprise one or several containersfor storing the products. The containers are placed in a shop andarranged such that the customers may transfer the product from thestorage container to a bag or the like carried by the customer. Thecustomer may thereafter bring the bag to the shop's till for weighingand payment.

Where the shop provides several varieties of a certain product, it isusual for a number of storage containers corresponding to the number ofproduct varieties to be placed adjacent to one another, often in amatrix containing horizontal rows and vertical columns of containers.The customer may then simply pick or feed out the desired quantity ofeach product variety and transfer it to a common bag for mixing theproduct varieties. This type of sale of sell-by-weight loose productsallows an effective utilization of space for the shopkeeper, lowpackaging consumption and wide freedom of choice for the customer to buythe desired quantity and product mix. By suitable shaping of thecontainers, it is also possible for the products to be displayed in aclear and appealing manner, which provides good customer informationand, moreover, can help to promote increased sales.

The systems may be divided into two general groups comprising opensystems and closed systems. At the open systems, the customers may gainaccess to and come in direct contact with the product stored inside astorage container. Typically, at the open systems, the customer uses aspoon or a scoop to transfer the desired product amount from the storagecontainer to a bag or the like.

At the closed systems, direct contact is prevented, and the systems aredesigned such that the product may be fed out without allowing thecustomer to touch the product before it has left the storage container.Normally, the closed systems comprise means for feeding the product bygravity to an openable door, gate, valve or the like. In use, thecustomer holds a bag or other receptacle below an outlet spout such thatthe desired amount of the product may be poured by gravity into thereceptacle upon opening the door and keeping it open until the desiredamount has been poured into the receptacle. EP 3 542 678 A1 disclosessuch a closed gravity feed system.

The known closed systems thus afford for a high degree of hygieniccleanliness with a comparatively low risk of contamination of theproducts stored in the container. However, such closed systems are notsuitable for a lot of products, since the gravity fed passage throughthe openable door may cause the loose product to be packed together,agglomerated or to form lumps in the outlet passage. This in turnprevents the possibility to dispense the desired amount and may evencause clogging of the outlet passage such that all further dispensing isprevented. These problems especially occur when the closed systems areused for sticky and/or soft loose products such as sweets and candy.

Hence, the open systems have hitherto been the only practically viablesolution for such sticky and/or soft sell-by-weight loose products. EP 2394 535 A1 discloses such an open system comprising a storage containerhaving a rear fill opening, a front pick-out opening and a slopingbottom wall for guiding the product towards the pick-out opening. Thepick-out opening is covered by an openable lid which the customer mayopen for picking out the desired amount by using a hand-held scoop. Theuse of a hand-held scoop allows for a precise metering and easy pickingalso of bulk products that are prone to stick together. However, at opensystems, the stored products are exposed to contamination by foreignmatter entering through the pick-out opening when the lid is open.

SUMMARY

An object of the present disclosure is to provide an enhancedmerchandise supply device.

Another object is to provide such a device which prevents intrusion offoreign matter to the stored product while still allowing precisemetering and easy transfer from the storage container to a collectionreceptacle also of bulk products that are prone to stick together.

A further object is to provide such a device which is simple inconstruction and which may be manufactured at a comparatively low cost.

Still another object is to provide such a device which is easy to clean.

Yet an object is to provide such a devices which promotes sales of theproducts stored and supplied therefrom.

According to a first aspect, the present disclosure provides amerchandise supply device according the claim 1. The merchandise supplydevice is arranged for storing and making available for pickingsell-by-weight loose products. The merchandise supply device comprises acontainer having side walls and a bottom wall, which walls togetherdefine a storage space for the product. A sloped bottom wall is arrangedfor gravity feeding the product from a rear fill opening to a frontpick-out opening, which pick-out opening is covered by an openable lid.The pick-out opening is covered by an intrusion barrier devicecomprising an iris port.

The merchandise supply device thus allows for easy and precisepicking-out of the desired product amount by introducing a hand-heldscoop, pliers or similar tool through the iris port and the pick-outopening after opening the lid. During such insertion of the tool, theiris port deforms to follow the shape of the inserted tool such that theopening exposing the interior of the container is kept to a minimumduring use of the tool. When the tool is withdrawn from the pick-outopening, the iris port closes such that the pick-out opening isessentially sealed from the surrounding atmosphere. By this means theexposure to of the stored product to the surrounding atmosphere is keptto a minimum which essentially reduces the risk of contamination of thestored product, by bacteria, viruses and other foreign matter.

By designing the intrusion barrier device and the iris port accurately,it is further possible to completely prevent and make impossible theinsertion of a hand through the pick-out opening. This solves animportant problem at conventional open systems where customers mayneglect the intended use of a tool to instead grab the products directlyusing the fingers. Naturally, such direct human contact with the storedproduct increases the risk of contamination of the stored product. Inaddition, the mere possibility to reach the products by direct contactwith the fingers makes many customers reluctant to purchase productssupplied by such conventional open systems, which reduces the sales ofsuch products.

Not the least at times with pandemic diseases spreading in society, thepresent merchandise supply devices thus provides an efficient means forhygienic supply of precisely selected amounts of bulk products which maywillingly be used by most customers.

According to one embodiment, the iris port may comprise a membrane ofresiliently flexible material. In this disclosure, the term “membrane”is used to signify a comparatively thin and soft pliable sheet of amaterial which may or may not be permeable to certain substances. Inparticular the material is preferably essentially impermeable to air,moisture and other substances normally occurring in the atmospheresurrounding the merchandise supply device.

The membrane may exhibit at least one through penetrating slit whichdefines at least one resiliently deflectable sealing tongue.

The membrane may exhibit two through penetrating slits arranged in across formation and defining four generally triangular sealing tongues.

Preferably a maximum opening dimension of the iris port is smaller thanapprox. 10 cm. By this means insertion of a human hand through thepick-out opening is efficiently prevented.

In cases where the iris port comprises two slits in cross formation eachslit may have a longitudinal extension of 3-10 cm, preferably 5-8 cm.

The intrusion barrier device may comprise a mounting bracket to whichthe iris port is fixed, which mounting bracket is insertable through thepick-out opening and fixable to the container. This provides an easymeans for fixing the intrusion barrier to the container.

The mounting bracket may comprise a base plate with a port openingcovered by the iris port and at least two mounting legs extending fromthe base plate and being supported by the bottom wall of the container.

The port opening preferably has an opening area which is smaller thanapprox. 50 cm². This further prevents insertion of a human hand into thecontainer.

The iris port may be detachably fixed to the mounting bracket. Thisallows for easy removal of the iris port such as for cleaning andexchange if damaged.

The iris port may be clamped between the mounting bracket and aperipheral mounting disc. This provides a tight and well-sealed fixationof the iris port while still allowing easy removal.

The peripheral disc, the iris port and the mounting bracket may eachexhibit a number of mutually aligned fixation holes receiving fasteningelements.

The intrusion barrier device may be retrofittable to existingmerchandise supply devices.

According to a second aspect, the present disclosure provides anintrusion barrier device for a merchandise supply device which comprisesa container having a rear fill opening, a front pick-out opening, sidewalls and a bottom wall, which walls together define a storage space fora product. The intrusion barrier device comprises a mounting bracketwith a base plate exhibiting a port opening covered by an iris port andat least two mounting legs extending from the base plate. The intrusionbarrier device may be embodied in accordance with the above describedmerchandise supply device and exhibits corresponding objects andadvantages.

Further objects and advantages of the merchandise supply device and theintrusion barrier device will appear from the following detaileddescription of exemplifying embodiments and from the appended claims.

Generally, all terms used in the claims are to be interpreted accordingto their ordinary meaning in the technical field, unless explicitlydefined otherwise herein. All references to “a/an/the element,apparatus, component, means, step, etc.” are to be interpreted openly asreferring to at least one instance of the element, apparatus, component,means, step, etc., unless explicitly stated otherwise. The steps of anymethod disclosed herein do not have to be performed in the exact orderdisclosed, unless explicitly stated.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Aspects and embodiments are now described, by way of example, withreference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective, partly exploded view of a merchandise supplydevice according to one embodiment.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the merchandise supply device shown inFIG. 1 when assembled and further illustrating a tool for picking outproducts stored in the device.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view corresponding to FIG. 2 schematicallyillustrating the tool being inserted through the iris port of themerchandise supply device.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The aspects of the present disclosure will now be described more fullyhereinafter with reference to the accompanying drawings, in whichcertain embodiments of the invention are shown.

These aspects may, however, be embodied in many different forms andshould not be construed as limiting; rather, these embodiments areprovided by way of example so that this disclosure will be thorough andcomplete, and to fully convey the scope of all aspects of invention tothose skilled in the art. Like numbers refer to like elements throughoutthe description.

FIG. 1 shows an embodiment of the merchandise supply device when partlydisassembled. The merchandise supply device comprises a container 10which has a number of side walls including opposed walls 11, 12, acurved front wall 13 and a rear wall (nor shown). A bottom wall 14extends between lower portions of walls 11, 12 and front wall 13. Theside walls 11, 12, 13 and the bottom wall 14 define an interior spacefor storing a bulk product (not shown) such as sweets, candy, cereal orthe like. The container exhibits a rear fill opening 15 which isarranged at the top of an upwardly protruding rear portion of thecontainer 10. The fill opening 15 is covered by a removable fill openinglid 16.

The curved front wall 13 exhibits a front most generally verticalportion 13 a, an intermediate sloping portion 13 b and a rear, generallyvertical portion 13 c. A pick-out opening 17 is arranged in theintermediate sloping portion 13 b. A openable lid 18 is pivotallyconnected to the container 10 by means of two hinges 19 a, 19 b. The lid18 is pivotal between a fully open position shown in FIG. 1 and a fullyclosed position (not shown) in which the lid fully covers the pick-outopening 17. The hinges 19 a, 19 b are damped to provide a braked softclosing of the lid when released from a vertical position.

In the shown example the merchandise supply device further exhibits achassis 20 fixed to the container 10 and arranged for attaching thedevice to a shelf, a stand, a bracket or the like (not shown).

The merchandise supply device further comprises an intrusion barrierdevice 30. The barrier device 30 comprises a mounting bracket 31 whichexhibits a base plate 32 and two mounting legs 33, 34 extendingperpendicularly downwards from opposing side edges of the base plate 32.A pair of fixation tabs 35 extend rearwardly from the rear edge of thebase plate 32. A rectangular port opening 36 is formed centrally in thebase plate 32. The port opening 36 is fully covered by an iris port 40which is clamped between the base plate 32 and a peripheral mountingdisc 37, which exhibits a central opening having essentially the samedimensions as the port opening 36.

The iris port 40 is formed of a rectangular membrane 41 of a resilientlyflexible material such as silicone or a vinyl-based material. A numberof fixation holes 41 a are distributed along a peripheral portion of themembrane 41. Each fixation hole 41 a is aligned with a correspondinghole 32 a, 37 a through the base plate 32 and the mounting disc 37. Theiris port 40 is fixed to the mounting bracket 31 by being interposedbetween the base plate 32 and the mounting disc 37. The membrane 41 isclamed between the base plate 32 and the mounting disc 37 by fasteningmeans (not shown) inserted through the aligned holes 37 a, 41 a, 32 a.The fastening means may be formed e.g. as snap-fitted pins, rivets,screws and bolts or the like.

The intrusion barrier device is attached to the container 10 byinsertion through the pick-out opening 17. In the mounted position themounting legs 33, 34 rest on a front portion of the bottom wall 14, aperipheral portion of the base plate 32 rests against a support flangeor lip arranged around the pick-out opening 17 and the fixation tabs 35are engaged under the rear edge of pick-out opening 17. Preferably, themounting bracket 31, the iris port 40 and the mounting disc 37 are eachformed of a transparent material for enhancing the display of the storedproduct and facilitating picking-out of the product.

A pair of through penetrating slits 42 a, 42 b are formed in across-shaped configuration in the membrane 41. The slits 42 a, 42 b thusforms four generally triangular shaped resilient tongues 43 a-d of themembrane 41. In the unloaded condition shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, theresiliency of the membrane material urges the tongues 43 a-d to regaintheir natural position being coplanar with the peripheral portion of themembrane 41. In this unloaded condition the neighbouring tongues contacteach other over the respective slit 42 a, 42 b such that the iris portis fully closed and seals the interior space from the surroundingatmosphere.

In use, the customer first opens the pivotal lid 13 as shown in FIG. 3.Thereafter, he or she grabs a suitable tool such as a pair of pliers 50which should normally be provided in the vicinity of the merchandisesupply device. When the pliers 50 is brought into contact with theclosed iris port 40 and pushed through the pick-out opening 17, theresilient tongues 42 a-d are yieldingly deformed to allow insertion ofthe front end of the pliers 50 into the container. The resiliency of thetongues 43 a-d causes the tongues 42 a-d to be temporarily formed so asto follow the outer contour of the portion of the pliers which isinserted through the iris port 40. By this means the iris port 40 onlyopens to the degree necessary for inserting and moving the front end ofthe pliers 50 inside the container 10. This in turn results in that theopening needed for inserting the pliers 50 is kept to a minimum therebyto minimize the risk of foreign matter to be introduced into thecontainer 10.

When the desired product amount has been grabbed by the pliers 50 orcollected by the scoop, the tool 50 is withdrawn through the pick-outopening 17 and the iris port 40 and the picked-out product may then bedropped into a bag or other receptacle. When the tool 50 is withdrawnfrom the iris port 40, the iris port automatically resumes its closedcondition by the tongues 42 a-d resiliently resuming their naturalplanar sealing position as shown in FIG. 2

The iris port 40 also prevents insertion of a human hand into thecontainer 10. The maximum opening area of the iris port is defined bythe length of the slits 42 a, 42 b. It has proven especiallyadvantageous to give the two slits somewhat different longitudinalextensions. In the shown example the shortest slit 42 a is approx. 4-6cm and the longest slit 42 b approx. 6-9 cm. By such slit lengths thepliers 50 and other suitable tools may readily be inserted andmanipulated for picking-out any desired product amount from thecontainer. At the same time, such slit lengths limit the maximum openingarea of the iris port 40, such that a human hand of normal size may notbe introduced through the iris port 40. Insertion of a human hand may befurther prevented by limiting the opening area of the port opening 36.Typically, the dimensions of the port opening 36 are chosen tocorrespond with the length of the slits 42 a, 42 b. Hence, in the shownexample, the port opening 36 may be rectangular with one side having thelength 4-6 cm and one side the length 6-8 cm. By making the dimensionsof the port opening essentially corresponding to the length of the slits42 a, 42 b rapture initiated at the ends of the slits is also prevented.

The arrangement of the iris port 40 as a part of intrusion barrierdevice 30 having a mounting bracket allows for that the barrier memberwith iris port may be retrofitted onto existing merchandise supplydevices having a container with a pick-out opening.

The aspects of the present disclosure have mainly been described abovewith reference to a few embodiments and examples thereof. However, as isreadily appreciated by a person skilled in the art, other embodimentsthan the ones disclosed above are equally possible within the scope ofthe invention, as defined by the appended patent claims. For example,the iris port may comprise other numbers of slits than two for definingthe resiliently deflectable sealing tongues. It may e.g. be sufficientto provide a single curved slit which defines a single generallyU-shaped resiliently deflectable tongue. Alternatively, the iris portmay comprise three or more slits arranged to define several resilienttongues arranged in a star or flower shaped configuration.

What is claimed is:
 1. Merchandise supply device for storing and makingavailable for picking sell-by-weight loose products, comprising: acontainer (10) having side walls (12, 12, 13) and a bottom wall (14),which walls (11-14) together define a storage space for the product,wherein a sloped bottom wall (14) is arranged for gravity feeding theproduct from a rear fill opening (15) to a front pick-out opening (17),which pick-out opening (17) is covered by an openable lid (13),characterized in that the pick-out opening (17) is covered by anintrusion barrier device (30) comprising an iris port (40). 2.Merchandise supply device according to claim 1, wherein the iris port(40) comprises a membrane (41) of a resiliently flexible material. 3.Merchandise supply device according to claim 2, wherein the membrane(41) exhibits at least one through penetrating slit (42 a, 42 b) whichdefines at least one resiliently deflectable sealing tongue (43 a-d). 4.Merchandise supply device according to claim 3, wherein the membrane(41) exhibits two through penetrating slits (42 a, 42 b) arranged in across formation and defining four generally triangular sealing tongues(43 a-d).
 5. Merchandise supply device according to claim 1, wherein amaximum opening dimension of the iris port (40) is smaller than 10 cm.6. Merchandise supply device according to claim 1, wherein the intrusionbarrier device (30) comprises a mounting bracket (31) to which the irisport (40) is fixed, which mounting bracket (31) is insertable throughthe pick-out opening (17) and fixable to the container (10). 7.Merchandise supply device according to claim 6, wherein the mountingbracket (31) comprises a base plate (32) with a port opening (36)covered by the iris port (40) and at least two mounting legs (33, 34)extending from the base plate (32) and being supported by the bottomwall (14) of the container (10).
 8. Merchandise supply device accordingto claim 7, wherein the port opening (36) has an opening area which issmaller than approx. 50 cm².
 9. Merchandise supply device according toclaim 6, wherein the iris port (40) is detachably fixed to the mountingbracket (31).
 10. Merchandise supply device according to claim 6,wherein the iris port (40) is clamped between the mounting bracket (32)and a peripheral mounting disc (37).
 11. Merchandise supply deviceaccording to claim 10, wherein the peripheral disc (37), the iris port(40) and the mounting bracket (32) each exhibits a number of mutuallyaligned fixation holes (32 a, 37 a, 41 a) receiving fastening elements.12. Merchandise supply device according to claim 1, wherein theintrusion barrier device (30) is retrofittable to existing merchandisesupply devices.
 13. An intrusion barrier device (30) for a merchandisesupply device comprising a container (10) having a rear fill opening(15), a front pick-out opening (17), side walls (11, 12, 13) and abottom wall (14), which walls (11-14) together define a storage spacefor a product, which intrusion barrier device (30) comprises a mountingbracket (31) with a base plate (32) exhibiting a port opening (36)covered by an iris port (40) and at least two mounting legs (33, 34)extending from the base plate (32).